News
Tourists Wild about Atlantic Way
Overseas tourists were ‘driven wild by the Atlantic Way’ and visited Galway and the West of Ireland in record numbers last year.
Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures prove that 2014 was the best year since 2007 for tourism in Galway and the West as overseas visitor numbers returned to record ‘boom’ time figures.
Local tourism industry chiefs predict that 2015 will be even busier as word spreads about the Wild Atlantic Way, a brand specifically developed to compete internationally for overseas tourists.
Fiona Monaghan, head of operations at Fáilte Ireland West, said it is encouraging that overseas visitor numbers to Ireland grew in 2014, which was the year after the Gathering (2013).
“Last year was well up on the previous year and 2014 was our best year since 2007. We are only now returning to 2007 levels and we are confident that we can build on that again in 2015 with the Wild Atlantic Way,” said Ms Monaghan.
Ms Monaghan said that Ireland’s overseas markets only returned to growth in 2012 and 2013, helped by the Gathering, which was boosted by North American and British tourists.
What is encouraging about the latest statistics for 2014 is that all markets – including mainland Europe that doesn’t have a big Diaspora returning as part of the Gathering – have now returned to growth.
She explained that over 50 travel writers were guests of Fáilte Ireland along the Wild Atlantic Way last year and the boost from that exposure is only going to ‘kick-in’ in terms of bookings and visits in 2015.
Fáilte Ireland will continue to promote and further developer the Wild Atlantic Way this year, she said, in order to drive tourism numbers to Galway and the West, including through online social media and traditional outlets.
In Connemara, for example, almost €1 million has been allocated for a tourist discovery point in Connemara, one of 15 along the Wild Atlantic Way, which will be completed before the yearend.
The point, to improve the visitors experience, will celebrate the Marconi Wireless Station, the world’s first transatlantic station in 1907, and the site where Alcock and Brown landed, marking the first non-stop transatlantic flight in 1919.
One of the challenges facing Galway and the West was that over 70% of all overseas tourists visit the East coast.
“Particularly the British, which is our biggest market, and so we will be trying to attract more of them to the West. Galway, which is mid-way along the Wild Atlantic Way, and which is the largest urban centre on the Wild Atlantic Way, is ideally placed to be a starting point, or finishing point for visitors to the Wild Atlantic Way due to its proximity to Dublin and access to Shannon Airport and Ireland West Airport in Knock,” she said.
The Wild Atlantic Way stretches along the west coast from Donegal down to Cork. It is designed to attract overseas visitors, and particularly to boost visitor numbers in the off-season, with unique out-of-season pursuits such as whale watching or storm-watching.
The CSO tourism figures reveal that at over 7.6 million visits, overall trips to Ireland were up 8.9% in 2014 compared to 2013. Visits from mainland Europe grew by 7.1% in 2014, to 2,638,100 visits; North America registered an increase of 14.7% for 2014 (1,328,600 visits); visits from Great Britain were up by 8.0% for 2014 (3,163,900 visits); visits from the rest of the world (mostly long-haul and developing markets) totalled 473,800 for 2014 (representing an increase of 8.7%).
“We are very optimistic that the Wild Atlantic Way will continue to delivery growth in overseas numbers to Galway and the West of Ireland in 2015,” added Ms Monaghan.
Fáilte Ireland West held an industry workshop with businesses in Salthill Hotel on Wednesday of this week.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
On the eve of completing his 150th marathon, an odyssey that has taken him across 53 countries, Loughrea’s Marathon Man has announced that he is planning to hang up his running shoes.
But not before Jarlath Fitzgerald completes another ten races, making it 160 marathons on the occasion of his 60th birthday.
“I want to draw the line in 2026. I turn 57 in October and when I reach 60 it’s the finishing line. The longer races are taking it out of me. I did 20 miles there two weeks ago and didn’t feel good. It’s getting harder,” he reveals.
“I’ve arthritis in both hips and there’s wear and tear in the knees.”
We speak as he is about to head out for a run before his shift in Supervalu Loughrea. Despite his physical complaints, he still clocks up 30 miles every second week and generally runs four days a week.
Jarlath receives injections to his left hip to keep the pain at bay while running on the road.
To give his joints a break, during the winter he runs cross country and often does a five-mile trek around Kylebrack Wood.
He is planning on running his 150th marathon in Cork on June 4, where a group of 20 made up of work colleagues, friends and running mates from Loughrea Athletics Club will join him.
Some are doing the 10k, others are doing the half marathon, but all will be there on the finishing line to cheer him on in the phenomenal achievement.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
From the Galway City Tribune – An impassioned plea for a ‘masterplan’ that would guide Galway City into the future has been made in the Dáil. Galway West TD Catherine Connolly stated this week that there needed to be an all-inclusive approach with “vision and leadership” in order to build a sustainable city.
Deputy Connolly spoke at length at the crisis surrounding traffic and housing in Galway city and said that not all of the blame could be laid at the door of the local authority.
She said that her preference would be the provision of light rail as the main form of public transport, but that this would have to be driven by the government.
“I sat on the local council for 17 years and despaired at all of the solutions going down one road, metaphorically and literally. In 2005 we put Park & Ride into the development plan, but that has not been rolled out. A 2016 transport strategy was outdated at the time and still has not been updated.
“Due to the housing crisis in the city, a task force was set up in 2019. Not a single report or analysis has been published on the cause of the crisis,” added Deputy Connolly.
She then referred to a report from the Land Development Agency (LDA) that identified lands suitable for the provision of housing. But she said that two-thirds of these had significant problems and a large portion was in Merlin Park University Hospital which, she said, would never have housing built on it.
In response, Minister Simon Harris spoke of the continuing job investment in the city and also in higher education, which is his portfolio.
But turning his attention to traffic congestion, he accepted that there were “real issues” when it came to transport, mobility and accessibility around Galway.
“We share the view that we need a Park & Ride facility and I understand there are also Bus Connects plans.
“I also suggest that the City Council reflect on her comments. I am proud to be in a Government that is providing unparalleled levels of investment to local authorities and unparalleled opportunities for local authorities to draw down,” he said.
Then Minister Harris referred to the controversial Galway City Outer Ring Road which he said was “struck down by An Bord Pleanála”, despite a lot of energy having been put into that project.
However, Deputy Connolly picked up on this and pointed out that An Bord Pleanála did not say ‘No’ to the ring road.
“The High Court said ‘No’ to the ring road because An Bord Pleanála acknowledged it failed utterly to consider climate change and our climate change obligations.
“That tells us something about An Bord Pleanála and the management that submitted such a plan.”
In the end, Minister Harris agreed that there needed to be a masterplan for Galway City.
“I suggest it is for the local authority to come up with a vision and then work with the Government to try to fund and implement that.”
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
